Pencil sharpener



Jan. 4, 1966 R. J. BRAND PENCIL SHARPENER Filed June 5, 1964 l/T/w/raz Robe/"t J Brand United States Patent 3,227,140 PENCIL SHARBENER Robert J. Brand, Berwyn, Ill., assignor to Apsco Products, Inc., Rockford, 11]., a corporation of Illinois FiledJune 5, 1964, Ser. No. 372,865

9 Claims. (Cl. 120-96) This invention relates to crank operated pencil sharpeners and is more particularly concerned with the following improvements: t

(1) a simpler and more compact as well as neater appearing and more easily operable 3-jaw circular chuck for gripping the pencil and feeding it forwardly to the cutters under spring pressure active on the reciprocable carriage that is mounted on the chip receptacle, the present chuck being operable relative to its mounting plate on the carriage by turning the housing by light finger pressure on its knurled periphery, there being a single U- shaped wire actuator spring that has one end pivotally mounted on the mounting plate and the other end pivotally connected to the housing, serving normally to urge the three pivotally mounted jaws of the chuck to swing inwardly toward gripping position, and

(2) a gravity actuated latch is provided in a vertical plane pivoted on one end wall of the chip receptacle and arranged to engage in either one of a plurality of notches provided in longitudinally spaced relation in one edge of an elongated bar secured on the back of the chuck and reciprocable horizontally inside the chip receptacle, so that the chuck when pulled out a certain distance preliminary to the sharpening of a pencil can be locked releasably in a selected extended position with the pencil entered in the chuck and arranged to engage the cutters,

and that when the crank is turned to start the sharpening operation, the cross-head on the cutter head assembly will in its rotation with the crank engage the latch andrelease it so as to allow the chuck to move the pencil in- -Wardly toward the cutters under action of the return springs housed in the guides, the inward feed under spring pressure continuing until there is no further resist- ,ance noticeable in the turning of the crank, showing that FIG. 2 is a section on the line ,2-2 of FIG. 1 illustrat- .ing the chuck constructionand showing the three jaws in their innermost position;

plate 10 and through a registering center hole 14 in the cylindrical bearing end 15 of the cutter frame 16. The latter is of oblong cross-section having cross-heads 34 at opposite ends, as shown in FIG. 4, to carry two rotary cutter blades 17 therein in the usual inwardly converging relation for operation in the usual way, namely, by rolling engagement of pinions 18 fixed on the inner ends of the cutters 17 inside a circular planetary gear 19 fixed in a tubular housing 20 provided on a plug 21 that is removably mounted in an opening in one end Wall of the chip receptacle 7, the frame 16 being rotatable in the usual way by means of a hand-crank 22 attached to the shaft 23 forming the other end of the frame 16 and coaxially arranged with respect to the first mentioned end 15 of the frame and mounted for rotation in the plug 21. No invention is claimed in the pencil sharpener thus far described, broadly speaking, except only insofar as cer* tain details thereof cooperate with or form a part of what is herein claimed as my invention.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 4, coiled compression springs 24 surround the guide rods 9 inside the tubular guides 8 and are compressed between annular shoulders 25 in the outer ends of the tubular guides 8 and annular shoulders defined on heads 26 provided on the inner ends of the rods 9, Wherebyto urge the rods 9 normally inwardly and thereby feed the pencil 12 inwardly relative-to cutters 17 for sharpening, the pencil being gripped in the chuck 11 moving with the guide rods. To hold the chuck 11 in extended relation to the chip receptacle and thus facilitate insertion of a pencil in the sharpener preparatory of the sharpening thereof, I provide an elongated latch bar'27 extending horizontally from the plate 10 through a slot 28 in the front end wall of the chip receptacle 7 for cooperation with a gravity actuated latch 29 disposed -in a vertical plane and pivotally mounted as at 30 on the inner side of the front wall of the receptacle 7 adjacent the slot 28, the latch having a vertical upwardly directed tooth 31 on one end engageable in either of two or more notches 32 provided in longitudinally spaced relation in one edge of the bar 27, the other end 33 of the latch 29 being heavy in relation to the toothed end 31 to cause/the end 31 to gravitate toward locking position automatically. Hence, a person preparing to insert a pencil need only turn the crank 22 to a horizontal position to locate the crosslead on the 'frame 16 in a corresponding horizontal position as seen in FIGS. 1 and 4, so

that the latch 29 will lock the chuck '11 releasably in whatever extended position the operator may select, and

is inserted far enough to engage the cutters '17, all that FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2 but with portions i The same reference numerals are applied .to corresponding parts throughout the views.

Referring to the drawing, the reference numeral .5. designates a base on which the pencil sharpener 6 embodying the improvements of my invention is mounted for support on a deck, the sharpener including a chip receptacle- 7 with a pair of laterally spaced, parallel, horizontally ex-"" tending tubular guides 8 fixed therein slidably receiving guide rods 9 that are fastened at their outer ends to -a t vertical ,plate 10 on which the chuck 11 for' gripp'in'g a 'pencil shown 'at 12 is mounted, The pencil extends through the chuck and through a center hole13 in the then the pencil can be inserted in the chuck. If the pencil remains is to turn the crank 22 and the latch 29will be automatically disengaged by slidable camming engagement by either of the inclined surfaces 34 on the crosshead end of the frame 16 with the laterally projecting lug 35 bent from the heavy end 33 of the latch 29. Here the crank 22 is in coplanar relation with the cross-heads but in some sharpeners the crank is arranged in degree relationship to the cross-heads so that the crank gravitates to its lowermost position automatically and the latch 29 takes hold of bar 27 the operator does not have to turn the crank to the desired position for setting of the chuck :11 in spaced extended relation to the chip receptacle 7. t In passing, it will be seen in FIG. 1 that the bar 27 has a right angle bent end portion 36' that is perforated arid fastened by means. of a screw 37 thatextends through the plate 10 and threads in a hole in the back plate 3.8 of the, chuck 11, .this being one of three screws by 'means of 'which the plate 10 is secured to the back plate 38 of "the chuck. 11, which will now be described.

V Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3, the circular metallic back plate 38', which is fixed in relation to plate 10, has a hollow circular plastic knob 39 oscillatable with respect thereto and held against axial displacement therefrom by means of three screws 40 threaded in stepped circular bosses 41 molded on the inside of the knob, the reduced ends of which slide in arcuate slots 42 provided in the plate, thereby positively limiting the extent of angular movement of the knob. A single U-shaped wire spring 43 disposed in a plane parallel to the plate 38 and between it and the plate has one end 44 bent at right angles and entered pivotally in a center hole in a boss 45 molded integral with the knob 39 while the other end 46 has a hook thereon engaged under the outwardly struck lug 47 on plate 38 in which one of the screws 37 is threaded, whereby normally to hold the knob 39 in the one limit position shown in FIG. 2, in which all of the three jaws 48 of the chuck are disposed at their inner limit position, as appears in FIG. 2. The offsetting of the lugs 47 with respect to plate 38 provides clearance space for spring 43 between plates 10 and 38. The jaws 48 are of elongated generally triangular form and are pivoted intermediate their ends on studs 49 that are riveted to the plate 38, gripping teeth 50 being provided on the inner end of each of the jaws in an arc eccentric with respect to the pivot 49, while the other or outer end 51 .of each jaw is in the form of a rounded head slidable inside the knob 39 in a radial groove 52 defined in a boss 53 molded on the inside of the knob 39. Thus, in operation, the jaws are normally as they appear in FIG. 2, too close together to receive a pencil therebetween, but a slight turn of the knob 39 serves to spread the jaws apart so a pencil can be inserted therebetween, and when the knob is released the jaws grip the pencil under light spring pressure, due to the action of spring 43, the pressure being only enough to prevent slippage but not enough to mar the finish on the pencil. The knurled periphery 54 of knob 39 enables positive operation of the knob with light finger pressure, without danger of slippage.

It is believed the foregoing description conveys a good understanding of the objects and advantages of my invention. The appended claims have been drawn to cover all legitimate modifications and adaptations.

I claim:

1. In a pencil sharpener, a pencil holding chuck comprising a circular back plate adapted to be fixed on slide means reciprocable relative to a chip receptacle wherein pencil sharpening means is rotatably mounted, said back plate having a center hole provided therein in coaxial relation to a pencil hole provided in the adjacent end of the chip receptacle for extension of a pencil through said chuck into said chip receptacle for engagement with the pencil sharpening means, a circular hollow knob of approximately the same diameter as said back plate mounted thereon in spaced parallel coaxial relationship thereto for rotary movement with respect thereto, said Knob, having a center pencil hole in register with the center pencil hole in the back plate, spring means resisting turning of said knob in a chuck opening direction and providing thereby the spring pressure acting on the chuck jaws to grip a pencil, a plurality of circumferentially spaced elongated chuck jaws housed inside said knob in radial relationship thereto and pivoted intermediate their ends on one of said back plate and knob elements on axes in radially spaced parallel relation to the axis of rotation of said knob, radial guides provided on the other of said back plate and knob elements relative to which the radially outer ends of said jaws are slidably guided, and arcuate toothed pencil gripping surfaces all struck on the same arcs and all equally spaced from and all eccentric with respect to the respective jaw pivots in the same direction and to the same extent provided on the radially inner ends of said jaws.

2. A pencil sharpener chuck construction as set forth in claim 1 wherein the spring means comprises a generally U-shaped spring substantially radially disposed with respect to the back plate and knob in a plane substantially parallel thereto and having the end of one leg of the U pivotally connected to the back plate and the end of the other leg of the U pivotally connected to the knob, the legs being forced toward one another in the turning of the knob to open the chuck jaws, whereby the spring is loaded to apply spring pressure to the chuck jaws to hold a pencil entered therebetween, the U-shaped spring being of slightly greater length than the radius of said back plate and knob and having a bight portion of enlarged radius aligned with the center holes in the back plate and knob, so that a pencil extending through the chuck extends freely through the bight portion of said spring.

3. In a pencil sharpener comprising a chip receptacle, a chuck for gripping a pencil mounted on slide means for reciprocation toward and away from said chip receptacle, spring means urging said chuck toward said chip receptacle to apply spring pressure on a pencil while gripped in the chuck to feed it resiliently toward a sharpening mechanism in the receptacle, and a pencil sharpening means rotatable in said receptacle by a hand-crank operable outside the receptacle, the improvement comprising in combination with the chuck and hand crank operable sharpening means, latch means for releaseably locking said chuck in a retracted position relative to said chip receptacle while a pencil is being placed in the chuck and the end of the pencil to be sharpened is being engaged with the pencil sharpening means, and latch release means operable in response to rotation of the hand crank for releasing said latch means.

4. A pencil sharpener structure as set forth in claim 3 wherein the chuck has an elongated bar extending therefrom into the chip receptacle parallel to the line of movement of the chuck, the bar having a stop shoulder provided thereon, the latch means comprising a latch inside said chip receptacle normally engageable with said shoulder, and the latch release means being a part inside said chip receptacle turning with the pencil sharpening means and arranged to disengage said latch in the rotation of said pencil sharpening means.

5. A pencil sharpener structure as set forth in claim 4 wherein the latch is pivoted on said chip receptacle and gravitates normally to locking position and has a projection thereon which when moved serves to release the latch against gravity, the latch release part being arranged to engage said projection at intervals in the turning of the crank and pencil sharpening means.

6. A pencil sharpener structure as set forth in claim 4 wherein the latch is pivoted on said chip receptacle and gravitates normally to locking position and has a lug projecting therefrom which when raised serves to raise the latch to released position, the latch release part being one of two cross-heads of the pencil sharpening means between which a pair of rotary cutters are mounted in laterally spaced converging relation, the cross-head being arranged to serve as a cam to engage the lug slidably and raise it twice per revolution of the cross-head.

7. A pencil sharpener structure as set forth in claim 3 wherein the chuck has an elongated bar extending therefrom into the chip receptacle parallel to the line of movement of the chuck, said bar having stop shoulders thereon in longitudinally spaced relation predetermining several positions of the chuck spaced from the chip receptacle, the latch means comprising a latch inside said chip receptacle normally engageable with either of said shoulders, and the latch release means being a part inside said chip receptacle turning with the pencil sharpening means and arranged to disengage said latch in the rotation of said pencil sharpening means.

8. A pencil sharpener structure as set forth in claim 7 wherein the latch is pivoted on said chip receptacle and gravitates normally to locking position and has a projection thereon which when moved serves to release the latch against gravity, the latch release part being arranged to engage said projection at intervals in the turning of the crank and pencil sharpening means.

5 6 9. A pencil sharpener structure as set forth in claim References Cited by the Examiner 7 wherein the latch is pivote l on sai l chip receptacle and FOREIGN PATENTS gravltates normally to locklng posit on and has a lug projecting therefrom which when raised serves to raise 873,053 3/1942 Francethe latch to released position, the latch release part be- 5 832369 2/1952 Germanying one of two cross-heads of the pencil sharpening means 837,521 4/1952 Germany; between which a pair of rotary cutters are mounted in 4,951 2/1910 Great Bntamlaterally spaced converging relation, the cross-head being arranged to serve as a cam to engage the lug slidably EUGENE CAPOZIO Prlmary Exammer' and raise it twice per revolution of the cross-head. 10 LAWRENCE CHARLES, Examiner. 

1. IN A PENCIL SHARPENER, A PENCIL HOLDING CHUCK COMPRISING A CIRCULAR BACK PLATE ADAPTED TO BE FIXED ON SLIDE MEANS RECIPROCABLE RELATIVE TO A CHIP RECEPTACLE WHEREIN PENCIL SHARPENING MEANS IS ROTATABLY MOUNTED, SAID BACK PLATE HAVING A CENTER POLE PROVIDED THEREIN IN COAXIAL RELATION TO A PENCIL HOLE PROVIDED IN THE ADJACENT END OF THE CHIP RECEPTACLE FOR EXTENSION OF A PENCIL THROUGH SAID CHUCK INTO SAID CHIP RECEPTACLE FOR ENGAGEMENT WITH THE PENCIL SHARPENING MEANS, A CIRCULAR HOLLOW KNOB OF APPROXIMATELY THE SAME DIAMETER AS SAID BACK PLATE MOUNTED THEREON IN SPACED PARALLEL COAXIAL RELATIONSHIP THERETO FOR ROTATY MOVEMENT WITH RESPECT THERTO, SAID KNOB IN RADIAL RELATIONSHIP THERETO AND PIVOTED INTERMEDICENTER PENCIL HOLE IN THE BACK PLATE, SPRING MEANS RESISTING TURNING OF SAID KNOB IN A CHUCK OPENING DIRECTION AND PROVIDING THEREBY THE SPRING PRESSURE ACTING ON THE CHUCK JAWS TO GRIP A PENCIL, A PLURALITY OF CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED ELONGATED CHUCK JAWS HOUSED INSIDE SAID KNOB IN RADIAL RELATIONSHIP THERETO AND PIVOTED INTERMEDIATE THEIR ENDS ON ONE OF SAID BACK PLATE AND KNOB ELEMENTS ON AXES IN RADIALLY SPACED PARALLEL RELATION TO THE AXIS OF ROTATION OF SAID KNOB, RADIAL GUIDES PROVIDED ON THE OTHER OF SAID BACK PLATE AND KBOB ELEMENTS RELATIVE TO WHICH THE RADIALLY OUTER ENDS OF SAID JAWS ARE SLIDABLY GUIDED, AND ARCUATE TOOTHED PENCIL GRIPPING SURFACES ALL STRUCK ON THE SAME ARCS AND ALL EQUALLY SPACED FROM AND ALL ECCENTRIC WITH RESPECT TO THE RESPECTIVE JAW PIVOTS IN THE SAME DIRECTION AND TO THE SAME EXTENT PROVIDED ON THE RADIALLY INNER ENDS OF SAID JAWS. 